WWE Network will begin shutting down at the end of the year as Netflix gets ready to absorb much of its content with the Raw deal starting next year.
The WWE Network will begin closing its segments starting at the end of 2024, and classic content will be moved to Netflix outside of the U.S. TNT Sports’ contract is set to expire at the end of this year, signaling the first place to lose content. In January 2025, the U.K. will shut down the network.
Peacock, which absorbed the WWE Network, will continue to stream wrestling content through at least 2026.
“The WWE Network itself does exist outside of the United States. That will be folding at the end of the year,” Dave Meltzer reported on Wrestling Observer Radio, according to Cultaholic. “Netflix will pick up the content… Now, will they pick up all the content, all the archives? I don’t know, but they will be the sole source of that, the archival content of all the old territories and all the old stuff that was on the old WWE Network, that will move to Netflix outside of the United States in January.”
Meltzer said the network will stay active through existing media rights deals in India, Australia, Japan, and the Middle East. WWE Network was not available for confirmation.
The WWE Network was founded in 2015 and ended the era of pay-per-view business. The network was available for $9.99 a month before it merged with Peacock in the U.S. in 2021. However, the channel still remains available internationally in some markets.
On January 23, Netflix said it will bring RAW matches to the platform starting in 2025. This move set into motion the end of the WWE Network as a standalone channel. Netflix will become the new home for USA Network’s RAW starting in January 2025. The streamer will also become the go-to app for all WWE shows outside of the U.S., which includes SmackDown, NXT, and PLEs, and replace the WWE Network in various international markets.